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Tristan Thompson Shares Cryptic Message About Facing 'Demons' After Paternity Drama

Tristan Thompson shared a cryptic message amid his recent paternity case scandal.

"Sometimes you don't realize your own strength until you face your greatest weakness," he wrote on his Instagram Story Friday. "Hide from your demons and they'll slowly destroy your potential. Face them and they can potentially become your greatest asset."

In December, news broke that a woman named Maralee Nichols was suing Thompson, 30, for child support and other pregnancy-related fees, claiming that he had fathered her child.

The Sacramento Kings player initially disputed the paternity of the baby, who was born on Dec. 1. Earlier this month, he confirmed that the child is indeed his.

"Today, paternity test results reveal that I fathered a child with Maralee Nichols," he wrote on Instagram on Jan. 3. "I take full responsibility for my actions. Now that paternity has been established I look forward to amicably raising our son."

RELATED: Khloé Kardashian Is 'Leaning Heavily' on Mom Kris amid Tristan Thompson Paternity Drama: Source

Tristan Thompson
Tristan Thompson

Tristan Thompson/Instagram

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"I sincerely apologize to everyone I've hurt or disappointed throughout this ordeal both publicly and privately," he continued.

On a second Instagram Story slide, Thompson apologized to ex Khloé Kardashian, whom he was publicly dating during the time he admitted to sleeping with Nichols.

"Khloé, you don't deserve this. You don't deserve the heartache and humiliation I have caused you," Thompson wrote. "You don't deserve the way I have treated you over the years. My actions certainly have not lined up with the way I view you. I have the utmost respect and love for you. Regardless of what you may think. Again, I am so incredibly sorry."

In addition to his new baby, Thompson shares 3½-year-old daughter True with Kardashian, 37, and 5-year-old son Prince with ex-girlfriend Jordan Craig.

Tristan Thompson
Tristan Thompson

Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty

RELATED: Khloé Kardashian Shares Photos of Daughter True's New Cat Following Tristan Thompson's Apology

On Thursday, a source told PEOPLE that the recent scandal has "been devastating" for Kardashian. The pair had an off-and-off relationship for years but most recently split in June after getting back together around the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020.

"It took a lot for Khloé to get back with Tristan," the source said. "They had such amazing family time during the lockdown. Khloé really believed that Tristan had changed."

Now, however, she is focused on moving forward with the help of her "great support system," the source said.

"They are helping her to move on. This is it for her relationship with Tristan. She says she will never take him back again," the source added.